This fall, as the leaves change and the time changes, something else is changing... some very straightforward computer publishers are producing some very different books.
Microsoft Press, for instance, known naturally enough as the authoritative source for Windows systems certification books, is blazing new trails with Code: The Hidden Language of Computer Hardware and Software by Charles Petzold.
This may be a case where it's fair to judge a book by its cover. Right off, readers can see there's something different about this book -- for one thing, it's a hardcover. Next, the design is nothing short of elegant: the dust jacket is printed on a matte, cream-colored stock with spot varnish highlighting only the letters of the main title (and Petzold's picture inside the back flap).
The cover is a good clue to the subject inside, according to the book's editor, Ben Ryan. "We're telling a very different story here," he said. "Most books about how computers work are either visual guides or spend a lot of time talking about history.
"Petzold d sn't do that. He tells a story, in very accessible language, about how computer code is not beyond understanding. The alphabet is a code, and we all use it. To most people, the inner working of a computer is still a black box," Ryan said.
"The narrative approach to technical subjects is what makes Charles the perfect writer for this book," Ryan continued. "His Programming Windows (now in its fifth edition) was the first generally accessible book for programmers, and it's still one of the easiest to read and understand."
A quote from the text illustrates Petzold's style nicely:
"Sometimes we think of codes as secret, but most codes are not," Petzold writes. "Indeed, most codes must be well understood because they're the basis of human communication. The word code usually means a system for transferring information among people and machine. In other words, a code lets you communicate."
"This book represents something of a 'stretch goal' for us," Ryan noted. "We're trying to cross the boundary of the computer section, and break out Code as general nonfiction science. It hasn't been easy to explain the concept to the sales force, nor to have the sales force get it across to the bookstore buyers.
"Ideally, you'd like to have copies in both the general nonfiction and the computer departments," Ryan said, "but I was a buyer in bookstore for a long time, and I know that's just not going to happen. Still, you want the booksellers to know Code is aimed at a different, more mainstream audience."
Initial response, at least among traditional tech book readers, has been positive. "We had an agreement with the McGraw-Hill Bookstore stand at the Internet World show in New York City recently, and the sales were very good," Ryan said.
Good enough to justify more books like Code, perhaps a series?
"Well, it's still early to plan a series, but Charles would certainly be interested in something like that. Truthfully, it's very hard to find writers with both Charles's technical understanding and his skill with the language, his ability to tell stories. But if the right subject and writer came along, I'm sure we'd consider it seriously," Ryan said.
Reach for the Stars
Another publisher trying for a different audience with a nontechnical technical book is San Francisco“based No Starch Press.
No Starch is the publisher of the "No B.S." series of easy-to-use how-to manuals, and one of its lead titles this fall is the No B.S. Guide to Red Hat Linux 6 by Bob Rankin. The No B.S. Guide "is a no-nonsense book for readers who don't want to spend a lifetime learning to use Red Hat Linux," said publisher Bill Pollock. "The book gets people running Linux 6 in 10 steps, and shows how to set up and use Gnome, the new graphical interface."
Reaching for a new audience, though, is No Starch's Astronomer's Computer Companion by Jeff Foust and Ron LaFon, which Pollock described as "the first and only book that shows readers how to use a personal computer as a tool for exploring the universe."
Companion, written by professional astronomer Fouts, editor of Space Views, an online publication for space news, and devoted amateur LaFon, tells readers what software is best for tracking the movement of planets.
"This book is great for people who know nothing about astronomy," Pollock told PW, "because they can learn the basics, what to look for in the sky and how to generate star charts. But it's also a tool for experienced users, because there is a lot of sophisticated software available now, stuff that will allow you to get remote access through the Internet to high-powered telescopes for personal research projects."
No Starch books are distributed through Publishers Group West.
Closing the Open Source?
How open is Open Source software? Or, put another way, how long can Open source remain open? O'Reilly & Associates is joining with computer makers Silicon Graphics Inc. and VA Linux Systems to promote Debian Linux, a variant developed by Ian Murdock in 1993. While previous distribution of Debian Linux was free via Internet download, the current commercial release will be bundled with VA Linux hardware, and will contain a copy of O'Reilly's new book, Learning Debian GNU Linux. The package will also be available directly from VA Linux and in some retail stores for $19.95.
Rest assured, Linux supporters. O'Reilly has no designs on software hegemony. Actually, the opposite is true: O'Reilly, VA Linux and SGI see the current agreement as a way to pay back the hundreds of volunteers who have built the open software from which they are profiting.
The kernel of Linux code remains unchanged, and will be maintained by the same volunteer programming corps, and profits from the sale of the commercial package will be donated to a not-for-profit Open-Source support group called Software in the Public Interest.
I Want My MP3
MP3, the Internet technology for near-perfect reproduction and publication of music, has been challenging ideas about copyright and distribution rights for a while. Now MP3.com, the Web organization that promotes the technology, is self-publishing a book to support its users.
The Official MP3.com Guide to MP3 by Michael Robertson, founder of MP3.com and, according to BAM magazine, "one of the 100 most influential individuals in the music industry," and musician-writer Ron Simpson, will be available at Amazon.com and MP3.com for $19.95, with discounts of up to 20% off the cover price. The first printing is 10,000 copies, with updates to the text provided online at MP3.com.
The company is devoted to Internet distribution; so much so, in fact, that there is no CD full of software and music in this book. According to Robertson, "MP3 technology is changing so fast that it seems pointless to ship a CD that will be out of date before you buy the book." Which means that the book is the only tangible, physical product the company deals with.
And now for something completely different....
